Democratic Erosion University Course Student Blog

Students enrolled in our course are encouraged to write for the course blog, and to read and comment on posts from students at other participating universities. The blog offers students the opportunity to analyze current events through the lens of the theory and case studies they engage with through the course.

These are student blog posts written by student participants in the Democratic Erosion Course. These posts were not written by nor represent the views of the Democratic Erosion Consortium.

Food Security is Rooted Abroad

Global fertilizer supply chains connect geopolitical events abroad to food production at home in ways most consumers don’t see.

The Meaning of Silence : What the moment of silence for Melissa Hortman says about American democracy

On June 14, 2025, the lives of Melissa Hortman who was a House speaker in Minnesota and her husband Mark were taken in what authorities believe to be a politically motivated act of violence. The same day Senator John Hoffman and his wife were also shot and...

Buying Injustice: The Hidden Harms of this Act.

Are we looking to create a thriving society, or are we allowing fear into the lives of immigrant families? As new immigration policies appear, the question become, how do we prevent the changes that involve separating families and dismantling the place that...

Why EU Membership Isn’t Saving Croatia’s Democracy

Mar 26, 2026 | Suffolk University

More than a decade after joining the European Union, Croatia still struggles with corruption, weak courts, and low public trust. This raises a puzzle: if EU membership is...

In Illinois, Donors Narrowed Democracy… Again

Mar 25, 2026 | Suffolk University

Before Illinois voters cast a single ballot on March 17th, outside money had already been working to decide who they would get to choose from. Roughly $125 million poured...

Americans Care About Their Vote: A Student’s Perspective On Poll Working

Jan 11, 2023 | Georgia State University Perimeter College

By: Kimberly Brown Georgia State University With political polarization levels being higher than ever seen, citizens are divided on almost every belief: except voting. The patterns I saw among...

What has PiS done to the one-time democratic-front runner, Poland, in the name of Democracy?

Jan 6, 2023 | Sabanci University

Democracy has been specified as the fundamental reason for the long-unseen historical record of the reign of peace. Today, the world is experiencing a major threat to democracy after the third wave...

How Democratic Backsliding Hurts Elections? The Case of Orban’s Victory in 2022 Hungary General Elections

Jan 6, 2023 | Sabanci University

Hungary was seen as the success story of democratization among post-communist countries. When Orbán won the majority in 2010, democratic backsliding indicators came out of the box. Therefore,...

Is There Any Hope Left for Belarus? 2020 Election Protests in “the Last Dictatorship in Europe”

Jan 6, 2023 | Sabanci University

Following the 2020 presidential election results in favor of Lukashenko, Belarusians move to the streets demanding free and fair elections and democracy. However, this resulted in increasing state...

Turkey’s New “Media Disinformation Law” is a Threat to democracy

Jan 5, 2023 | Sabanci University

Turkey has recently enacted a new law on media disinformation, which has sparked widespread concern and criticism from human rights organizations, media freedom advocates, and international bodies...

Hungary: From Championship of Democratization to Hybrid Regime of Electoral Autocracy

Jan 5, 2023 | Sabanci University

Once described as the champion of the third wave of democratization in Europe, Hungary has become a pioneer of democratic backsliding. The concept of democratic backsliding refers to the incremental...

How Corruption and Nepotism Hinder Peru’s Consolidation of Democracy

Jan 5, 2023 | Sabanci University

A recent attempted coup has rocked Peru. Former president Pedro Castillo dissolved congress and attempted to install a “Government of Exception” in the early hours of December 7th 2022. After this...

A New World Order? Digital Authoritarianism

Jan 5, 2023 | Sabanci University

Kate Crawford in her book Atlas of AI argues that AI “grew on the battlefield where it was used to detect enemies, strange objects and maintain strategic control”. [1]The technology to which we...

Fall of Democracy in Turkey

Jan 5, 2023 | Sabanci University

Recently, the global rise of democratic regimes that began in the 1970s with the Third Wave of Democratization has come to a halt. In its place, many countries have experienced democratic...